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Thursday, August 29, 2013

'Stand Your Ground' No Longer on Solid Ground

"Stand your ground" is no longer on solid ground in Michigan. Some lawmakers want to review the law in the wake of the Zimmerman case. Darrell Standberry who fatally shot a man trying to steal his SUV doesn't think that is a good idea.

"I got out of the vehicle to go inside to pay for gas," he said. "I turned back and looked, and he was already in the driver's seat of my vehicle."

"He turned around and looked and [saw] that I was still standing there, and that's when he reached in his pocket to pull out his weapon. And I pulled out my weapon, and I fired one shot. And he took off in my vehicle."

His ride was wrecked, the carjacker was dead, and Standberry was arrested. He was never charged with a crime, and he said it's thanks to "stand your ground".

Not everyone is that happy with the law.

After George Zimmerman's acquittal in the Trayvon Martin case, the law has come under heavy scrutiny.

"I am not one of those guys that wants to take your gun away from you," said state Rep. Harvey Santana.

However, he does want to review the law and for Democrats and Republicans in Lansing to have a conversation about "stand your ground" and let the chips fall where they may.

"Maybe what we find out is that we have the best law in the union as it relates, and maybe we are the model for the nation to pursue legislation on. Maybe we find out we need to tweak this a little bit," Santana said.

Standberry doesn't buy it.

"If you're reviewing it, you're trying to make changes to it. That's what you're trying to do," he said.
Santana insisted he does not want to repeal the law, but there are a lot of people in Lansing who want it gone as soon as possible.

About Matt

An analysis of crime and punishment from the perspective of a former prosecutor and current criminal justice practitioner.
The views expressed on this blog are solely those of the author and do not reflect the opinions or postions of any county, state or federal agency.